A Little More Time
by Phalanx30
Summary: An AU of "Forget Me Not" Slade finds a way to save his sister Shara, and recover his brother Saber in the process. But his sister is still dying and the war is far from over.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing below except the plot. All characters, locations, and concepts are owned under their respective copyrights.

**Timeline and Spoilers: **Up to and Including "Forget Me Not"

**Author's note**: I am using names and terms from the US version of 'Teknoman' aired on UPN. That is the one I watched, I am aware of the other names used in both the Japanese and International Versions.

A Little More Time

**Chapter 1: A Brother's Gamble.**

It was an epic, if one-sided, battle of super-powered armored warriors. These warriors were known as teknomen. On the one side was someone trying to protect the Earth, her name was Shara. On the other side were warriors fighting for the invaders. They wished to enslave the human race and turn them into an army of slaves with horrific yet awe-inspiring capabilities.

Shara flung herself recklessly around the battlefield. Her armor glowed red from her battle aura. It branched out into wings of energy that would burn anyone who got caught in it. She resembled an angelic guided missile.

She could fight differently, but she was outnumbered 4 to 1 and her armor was built for speed and long range combat. Furthermore, her enemies had the full use of their armor and powers, while her power was slowly killing her. She had to buy time for her brother Slade to complete his mission and return, she had to protect his friends until then.

She hoped to survive until he could join her, but she knew that wasn't likely. Her thoughts and focus turned briefly '_Where are you, Slade?_' she came back only to realize one of her enemies was right in front of her. She was hoping for this, her aura would engulf him and hopefully take him out of the fight. Just as she was about to collide with the red and black armored opponent, a surge of pain gripped her, and her aura faltered. She felt something slam against her, and she was crashing to the ground. She knew then that she wouldn't survive '_I'm sorry brother. You just found me, and now I'll be leaving again._'

She looked up to see all four of her enemies looking down at her, their eyes flashing red with malice.

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Her brother was racing back, he had just destroyed the bomb that was fired at the Space Ring. He had taken out Allied Headquarters for Earth's Defense Forces as well. No great loss, earth's military had been all but shattered during the first week of the war. It's commander, General Gault, had become maniacal and delusional with power. The massive nuclear missile that Slade had destroyed was just the latest in a series of decisions that had brought the remainder of earth's defenses to the brink of annihilation.

He was inside the white and blue teknobot, Pegas, and was wondering how his friend's were holding out against four Teknomen. They had problems earlier, dealing with just his brother, Saber, and now the odds against them had further lengthened. He sought to find out what was happening back at the Space Knight command center. "Pegas, what do you read ahead of us." the robot responded in it's deep, mechanical voice.

**There are five energy signatures. Range 100 kilometers.**

Slade was confused, when he had left there were only four enemy teknomen. He asked the robot "Pegas, describe the fifth energy signature and armor."

**The armor is female in shape, heavily damaged. The energy is smaller than the others and falling steadily.**

'_No, Shara, why? We still had time to save you._' Slade commanded the robot "Pegas, classify fifth signature as friendly, are we in range yet, can I fire a teknobolt at them?

**Classification complete. Will be in range in 2 minutes for a full power shot.**

'_She will be dead by then._' Slade asked "I need options Pegas, what has increased range and accuracy?" Shara couldn't survive even a glancing shot from his new energy weapon boosted by anti-matter warheads.

Pegas searched his database and came up with the answer, Human weapons on vehicles called 'tanks' used it to destroy their counterparts. **"Solution found, there is enough power for six shots. Transmitting details now...Data exchange complete, Sabot Tekno-bolt ready for use."**

Slade told the robot "Set up four shots, target the four strong energy signatures. After the fourth shot, transfer all power to your engines."

**Affirmative**

"Pegas, dual battle mode, stand-by to fire" With that Slade appeared on top of the speedily flying robot. His red and white armor infused with unspent power. Pegas readied his own weapon system. Slade's shoulder pouldrons opened. And his eyes flashed green. On the right, there were four compacted energy rods created, each roughly two feet in length with a 20mm diameter. On the left there were four cup-like energy spheres created, with the hollow side facing outward and roughly 25mm in diameter.

Slade fired one the rods, it went rather slow as there wasn't much power behind it. He fired one of the cups, it caught up with the rod and flew with and just behind it. Pegas fired an anti-matter warhead. As the warhead came in contact with the energy cup, it exploded.

The explosion was of the nuclear variety in the tactical kiloton range. The cup bore the brunt of the explosion and transferred the force of it to the rod before disintigrating. The rod spedaway like a penetrator from an old earth tank shell. It reached hypersonic speeds and burned as it was wreathed in superheated plasma. By the time it would reach its target, the rod would be no bigger than a .50 caliber rifle bullet. But it would still punch through whatever it hit, including nearly indestructible teknoman armor.

The first shot happened in the span of about five seconds, the next three did the same. The four nuclear explosions first stopped and then pushed Slade and Pegas back with each one. After the last shot, Slade descended back into the robot, who then brought it's engines to full power. He was four minutes away from his sister, he hoped his modern fusillade would be effective in giving him a little more time.

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Shara reflected on all of the ways she could have died recently. First, there was her capture. Along with the rest of her family, friends, and crew of their ship, they explored an alien ship. Everyone was trapped by succubus-like lifeforms that studied them through extensive and continuous torture. She watched as some of her friends and family were killed during the process. She saw her father get spit out like nothing more than a chewed up morsel. The torture was agonizing for her. At times she wished it would all just end. Finally, she was put into a suspended and long-term storage pod. She had resisted becoming evil far longer than anyone else. She had seen what they had done to everyone she cared about.

Second, there was escaping her storage pod and the Moon and heading to Earth at high speed. Entering the atmosphere with no proper vector or navigation seemed like a sure way to end up as a burnt cinder. By the same thought, crashing to the ground like a meteor was not a way to keep one's health. But her armor was up to both challenges.

Third, she thought about the walk through the desert. She thought being cooked by the blazing hot sun was her future. Luckily she had been helped multiple times.

Fourth, there was the fight with her brother, Saber, who wanted so very badly to kill her for escaping and not turning evil like he had. Her other brother, Slade, had rescued her.

Fifth, it seemed likely that the incomplete tekno process would kill her. That she would fade away being comforted by her brother and his friends. A similar fate had killed her father.

Being crucified and tortured by the enemy, who included Saber, had crossed her mind, but that is what was actually happening. The odds were against it. But she was the unlucky one today. Her wrists were pierced and pinned to the rock of one the mesas surrounding the command center. She was still reeling from the pain of two slashes that criss-crossed her chest. Her armor had taken the edge off of the blows, so she was still alive. If just barely.

That looked like it was about to change as Saber drew his arm and lance back for a thrust that looked like it would gut her if it struck. She prayed and thought '_I'm sorry, Slade._' At that moment a speeding bullet of energy slammed into Saber's neck. It burned through his armor and hit the parasite that was controlling him. He was thrown to the ground by the force of the hit. He looked over to see that his comrades had suffered similar hits. They had been hit in the side, back, and front respectively. There were holes in their armor and burnt flesh underneath.

Saber's mind cleared, and realized the horror of what he had done, and what he was about to do to his own sister. He had to get rid of the other three teknomen, who were now his enemies. "Retreat, if Slade shows up, we are all vulnerable. I'll follow after I deal with the traitor here, she doesn't deserve her brief and pathetic existence." The three armored warriors, Axe, Lance, and Sword, heeded his orders and flew off. Saber stood up and walked over to Shara, who was limply hanging by her wrists. He took the two tekno-lances out, and caught her as she collapsed. At this point Slade appeared.

Slade saw Saber embracing and cradling Shara and guessed the worst. Some small part of his humanity must have let Saber be so gentle, after he had killed her of course. Slade readied himself for battle, when his brother's amplifed voice cut through his rage. "Slade, take her, she's still alive." Saber handed the red and yellow armored form of his little sister over to his twin.

Slade held her, like he would a bride. He looked at his brother "Stay here, I'll come back to get you, I don't know how the others will react to you." At Saber's nod, Slade turned and rocketed towards the battered command center. He reached an open loading bay, where an evacuation was underway. Slade saw Commander Jamison, leader of the Space Knights, and quite possibly the senior most military officer left on the planet.

"Slade? Is that Shara?" At the affirmative nod, Jamison yelled "We need a medic and gurney over here now!" As his voice carried and the soldiers under his command sought to carry out his order. Slade felt Shara's power leave her.

Slade was left holding the frail body of his sister. The ragged holes in her wrists, and gashes on her chest were stark against her pale skin. There was little blood, as the wounds had partially healed while her armor was present. Her whitish-blonde hair covered his hand. And her lavender blue eyes were staring at him "Thank...you...Slade." She would have said more but she was gripped by another surge of pain. She screamed, and Slade held her to him, trying to keep her body steady. Doctors and nurses had by this point gathered a gurney. When her body stilled, she was taken from him and rushed off to the medical wing of the base. She was alive, but for how long? And what about Saber? He thought '_I'm losing my sister, but have I really regained my brother?_'

Commander Jamison was still looking at him, Slade told him what he thought had happened "I'm not 100 percent sure, but I think I wounded Saber in a way that removed the Venemoid's hold over him."

By now the commander was accustomed to these swings of dealing with a dire situation while immediately welcoming hope in some form afterward. "What do you mean Slade? How do you know Saber's been turned to our side?"

"Well, he gave me Shara after she'd been tortured. If he was evil, she wouldn't be alive." Slade was having some doubts of his own, what if this was just another trick, so that Saber could kill him and his friends when he was welcomed as a new defender of the Earth.

Jamison would reserve judgment for now, Saber could prove to be a valuable ally. "Slade, go bring him in, I'll talk to him and see if what you're saying is true. Meanwhile, the Blue Earth crashed during its decoy mission, we've lost contact with Ringo. After you bring your brother in, if you have any time left in your armor, I want to you to see if Ringo survived the crash."

"My time is almost up, after I get Saber, I'll grab Star and Maggie and we'll take the Hover-tank out to the crash site." Slade and Jamison were both referring to the 30 minute time limit Slade had once he transformed, after that Slade became as evil as the enemy. The aforementioned Hover-tank was a prototype weapon developed to give the Space Knights some added defense against the forces of the enemy. It was all but useless against teknomen, but it could obliterate anything else the enemy had.

Mostly these were monsters called Spider-crabs, massive insectoid creatures that were very tough to kill with conventional human weaponry. There were still some roaming about on the once battlefield and could pose a real problem to a group of unprotected humans searching for a friend. So, the Hover-tank was an essential part of the search and rescue mission.

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Slade left Jamison and Shara. By the time Slade sped back to where he left Saber, the latter had powered down. Slade followed suit.

Saber had sat down with his back against a rock wall. As Slade drew closer his brother asked "Is Shara going to survive?" When he was evil, his voice always carried an arrogant edge to it. Now it was back to what Slade remembered as his brother's regular voice.

"For now, but her tekno power is killing her." Slade remained standing, even as his brother stood up to face him.

Saber looked his twin in the eye "I'm sorry for what I did to her, you, and your friends. I knew if Shara escaped as she did, before her transformation was complete, she would suffer horribly."

"Do you know of any way to save her?" Slade was ever-hopeful, he was always trying to keep what remained of his family and his friends alive.

Saber smiled then "You know it's funny, but the very monsters who did this to all of us, well, we can use some of their technology to save our little sister. Now come on, let's go meet these Space Knights and friends you are always protecting."

Slade and Saber, now literally brothers in arms, began making their way towards the heavily-damaged command center, and possibly towards a new, far hopeful phase in the global war against the alien invaders.

The day had started with two tekno-warriors loyal to Earth against four who fought to destroy the planet and it's people. Now, pending events with healing Shara, the odds would be more even. If Shara retained her powers, it would be three on three. If she had to be deprived of her powers, in order to save her, it would still be two super-powered warriors against three.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing below except the plot. All characters, locations, and concepts are owned under their respective copyright holders.

**Timeline and Spoilers: **Up to and Including "Forget Me Not" thereafter AU.

**Author's note**: I am using names and terms from the US version of 'Teknoman' aired on UPN. That is the one I watched, I am aware of the other names used in both the Japanese and International Versions. Please read and review. I welcome any praise or criticism. If there is anything you want to see, tell me.

**A Little More Time**

**Chapter 2: The Plan**

The Space Knight command center was heavily damaged during the last attack. So much so that it was on the brink of being evacuated. That was before there was a massive swing in the battle that was going on outside. If Shara had been killed the enemy would've had a chance to overrun the base.

However, Slade had created an attack, with the help of Pegus, that had saved his sister and brother in different ways.

Now with the rest of his unit doing various tasks, commander Jamison was contacting the remaining leadership of the Earth Defense Forces. The upper command echelons had been destroyed along with the headquarters by a nuclear missile that they fired. Slade had stopped it and the blast had descended on those who fired it. Jamison had an operation he wanted to present to his superiors "General, please hear me out."

"Commander, by rights I should have you under court-martial. It was a member of your unit that destroyed our headquarters. However, General Gault was insane. In light of that and your units excellent service thus far in the war, proceed." Newly minted General Hartmann was a younger man with brown hair in a buzz-cut. He had sharp brown eyes that saw even the smallest detail.

Hartmann had seen the enemy up close. He was the commander of the King detachment during operation Ace High. His men and woman had attacked the Venomoids head-on with little more than small arms. His forces conducted their mission to near perfection. He was able to conduct a classic fighting withdrawal against a superior force. The entire operation was successful, though there were heavy casualties. Mostly due to a surprise attack of an enemy Teknoman.

Commander Jamison knew this, and he knew Hartmann was a no-nonsense soldier, so he got right to the point "General, I have some intelligence on the alien spore plants that are now scattered around the globe, they need to be destroyed immediately."

"Our forces are at their breaking point, and you want me to expend men and material to kill some harmless plants? Never mind that any forces doing that will be vulnerable to attack." Hartmann found the plants disturbing, they were a symbol of an alien race trying to make Earth their own.

But he was being entirely serious about the state of Earth's military. They had suffered massive losses in both manpower and equipment. Not only that, but the enemy still possessed the initiative. When added to all of the other advantages that the Venomoids had over humanity, it made them unbeatable without some drastic change in the status quo of the war.

Jamison was about suggest just such a game changer "General, those plants are not harmless, they're the key to the enemy's victory. If they bloom, they will enslave what remains of humanity."

"How do you know this?" Hartmann was suspicious of Jamison and his separate unit. How did he know such a crucial piece of information? Some of the best minds on the planet had studied those plants to no avail.

Jamison thought back to Shara's startling revelation "We recently came across someone who defected from the Venomoids, and given her relationship with one of my soldiers, I trust her. Now, getting to my plan."

"Which is what, exactly?" Hartmann didn't like the idea of using any of his few remaining forces based on the possibly traitorous actions of some girl, someone who could be a double agent, she could very well be feeding Jamison false information.

Jamsion knew this sounded too good to be true. Nevertheless, Shara might have just given them a fighting chance in this war "As you well know, our conventional weapons are largely ineffective against the Spider-crabs. Also, the enemy Teknomen are immune to even our most powerful weapons. I want to start a crash program to equip part of our forces with energy weapons based on work from the tekno-suit project."

"That waste of resources, one of Gault's pet projects, why should we fritter away scarce men and material on something that has proven to be ineffective?" Hartmann wasn't exaggerating. Whole divisions could be equipped and supplied for months on what it cost to build one of those ridiculous suits.

Jamison was reaching his own breaking point for military formality and decorum today. His unit had suffered many casualties and his base of operations had nearly been destroyed. He had people still out there and he didn't know whether they were alive or dead "General, I am not talking about the suits, just the weapons, I want to retro-fit tanks, planes, ships, and base defenses. In the meantime, I want you to pull your forces back, preserve them as best as you can."

"To what end? And what about those Teknomen, what do you have planned for them Commander?" Hartmann could see the value in having more weapons capable of destroying Spider-crabs in one hit. But there was still the larger operation to consider, how would all of this help them win the war?

Jamison didn't quite have an answer for the second question, as for the first "I see this operation unfolding in two phases. Our remaining conventional forces will conduct a global assault on the spore plants. These plants are vital to the enemy's success, they will be forced to defend them. At that point, the forces equipped with energy weapons will move in to fight and eliminate the Spider-crabs. Once that fight is over, the enemy will have lost most of their forces."

"What of their trump card?" Hartmann was impressed. If Jamison's information was correct, he had identified the Venomoids center of gravity, their crucial asset. A rational opponent would have to try and protect something that important. Jamison had anticipated that and planned for a counterattack. Hartman was still concerned about the Teknomen, Jamison hadn't mentioned a counter for them. The enemy could win the war without those damned insects to help them.

The Space Knight commander knew as much "I'm sorry, I don't yet have a plan to deal with them yet. But I and my staff will work on the problem. The operation I have planned, it will take months to get everything ready, we'll have some time. At the moment, I know what it would take to destroy those Teknomen, I just don't know how to deploy those means in the best way. I suspect that once our big offensive starts, they will interfere. Will you give the order to go ahead with my plan?"

"Yes, I will, we'll codename it Kharkov." Hartmann was a student of history. Humanity was in dire straits, the same sort of situation the German army found itself after the battle of Stalingrad in one of the great wars of a couple of centuries ago. Like now, they had used flexibility and determined leadership to achieve a tactical victory. He could only hope that this operation would be a war winner rather than a stalling action.

Jamison smiled, thanked the general, and killed the communication. He turned his thoughts to the smaller but no less important matters involving the people under his command.

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Slade had left Saber to watch over Shara. He was going to round up Maggie and Star. Star was supposed to be watching over Shara while Slade went to stop General Gault earlier.

Slade was wondering _'How did Shara manage to join the fight? What happened to Star?'_

He found the answer when he entered Shara's former room. Star was slumped over the bed. Apparently Shara had rendered her unconscious. Slade rushed over to see how badly she was hurt. Thankfully, she didn't seem to have any head wounds. He shook her to see if she would awaken.

Star groaned and stirred "Slade?"

"What happened?" Slade watched as Star rolled off of the bed while keeping a hand over her stomach

Star winced as she hit the floor "Your sister packs quite a punch, I'm sorry, Slade." Star knew that it was her responsibility to watch over Shara.

"For what? She surprised you. Besides, she helped everyone survive the attack." Slade helped Star to sit back on the bed.

Star took a breath as the pain was fading "How is she? What happened?"

"Shara's still sick. I stopped General Gault. You won't believe me, but I was able to turn Saber to our side." Slade had a hard time believing it himself, if he was told the same story without seeing it first hand, he couldn't blame Star for being hesitant.

Star gasped, she remembered how dangerous Slade's brother was, he had almost killed her and he had turned Slade evil for a time "Are you sure he's not just going to double-cross us later?"

"He was about to kill Shara, they had tortured her. After I hit him, he sent the other Teknomen away and gave her to me, why would he do all of that if the Venomoids had any hold over him?" Slade was initially wary, if Saber wanted to betray them later then saving Shara was the perfect way to gain his brothers goodwill.

Star considered that for a moment, it was still possible that Saber was doing a long con. Maybe he was acting all nice to get closer to Slade and the rest of the Space Knights, then he would strike when their guard was down, but Slade couldn't be persuaded right now "Aside from that, why were you looking for me?"

"The fight's over for now, but we need to see if Ringo is still alive. I want to take the hover-tank, We need to be ready if any spider-crabs show up." Slade needed Star as she had experience using the vehicle.

The pain had largely faded, Star was still unsure how a punch to the gut could cause her to black out, Shara was weak from being sick. Although, her tekno-powers might have helped her. That combined with desperation could have given her unnatural strength. Star stood up "Let's get to the hanger bay, we can pick up Maggie and our ride there."

Slade was confident about gathering the rest of his team, Maggie was very enthusiastic about using the Hover-tank. She would be practically giddy at using the newly repaired vehicle again. He grabbed Star and moved quickly towards the hanger bay.

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While Slade was working towards checking on Ringo, Shara was waking from her latest pain-filled tekno-spasm. She knew that at some point they would kill her outright, either from the pain alone or bones breaking in the wrong places and going where they're not supposed to be. For now she was content to be in a comfortable place with familiar faces watching her. She focused on one of them "Ness, I'm sorry, I broke my promise to wait for you."

"Wrong brother, little sister. I get it, we're twins, how are you feeling?" Saber watched as his sister flinched and tried to move away from him. The other person in the room grabbed her hand and comforted her so she wouldn't pull out her I.V. and stitches.

Shara gasped, for an instant she thought she had been captured by the enemy and would be forced to complete her transformation. She would rather die than become a soulless monster "Cain? What's going on?"

The other person in the room reassured her. Shara trusted all of Slade's friends, though she had not spent much time with the girl who looked so much like her. "Shara, it's alright, he's on our side now." Tina turned and fixed Saber with a glare that had him take a step back "And you, try to be more gentle, I know you haven't had much practice at it, but she is your sister after all."

Saber, also known as Cain, was surprised at the fierceness the girl directed at him "You're right, I'm sorry. Shara, I know how this is going to sound. Like you, I was shown the way home. I'm not the monster who tried to kill you, I hope you'll forgive me with time."

"He's telling the truth, Slade vouched for him, he's with us now." Tina glanced at Saber, she believed Slade when he told them of his brother's change in loyalties, but she still remembered when Saber had turned Slade evil, she had almost been killed turning him back.

Saber regarded the girl _'She does bear a striking resemblance to Shara, though there's a toughness that Shara never had at that age.' _He was well aware of what had almost happened to her, he knelt down so he was closer to Shara "Thanks for the support, now, baby sister, are you okay?"

"For now, yes. But I'm still tired, and my time is growing short. At least, after I'm gone, you'll both still be here, you better win this war. So that no other family will have to suffer as we did." Shara would keep up a brave front as long as possible, but she felt the incomplete tekno-process working against her. She had one more transformation left in her, after that her body would be spent, and she would die no matter what. Even if she didn't transform, it would only delay the seemingly inevitable.

Saber surprisingly smiled at this admission, he could do more than comfort his sister in her final days "Quit talking like that, you're going to be fine. Darkon has a defense for disloyal Teknomen. Spectrum-disruption crystals, they'll shatter your ruby crystal and free you from the curse of being an unfinished Teknoman."

Tina and Shara were elated at first. Then they both sobered for different reasons, Shara spoke first "Those will cure me? That's great, but I won't be able to help in the next fight."

Tina had another concern, but she also knew something that Saber didn't, a shattered crystal can be reconstructed and used again with some help "Where are you going get some of those crystals, it's not like you had a bunch laying around on earth, and the only time we saw them was on the Space Ring." her next comments were directed at Shara "Don't worry about not helping, the fact that you're alive will help Slade anyway."

"I know you're right, it's just, well, I wanted to use these powers against those monsters." Shara had seen the way her brother had changed when they had found each other. She had heard stories from his friends. He fought the enemy with not much more than hatred. Though it had lessened over time as he became part of the Space Knights. When she had appeared, Slade was given something he thought was lost to him, part of his family.

Cain sought to deal with Tina's concerns first "Well, we never had many to begin with, Darkon never expected to deal with traitors. They are on the Space Ring though, in our main command section. They will be surrounded by pupating and mature Spider-crabs. With the upgrades I was given to battle with Slade, I should be able to cut a path through to the crystals quite easily."

Shara was about to protest, why were both of her brothers always racing off on one mission or another? She was stopped when Commander Jamison entered the room with a quick "I think that's a bad idea."

"How could it be? I'll kill the enemy in large numbers and take something they could use against us later." Cain rounded on the older man, he knew he was right, and if Slade had the same information, it is exactly what he would do.

Jamison could see the determination in Saber, it seemed the Carter family shared that trait "I apologize, the plan is sound, it's the execution that needs to be refined. Saber, I want to keep the Venomoids in the dark about you. With that in mind, We'll send Slade on that mission."

"You want me to be a surprise? Okay, I guess that makes sense, but how are you going to get Slade to the Space Ring? If I remember right, I destroyed your spaceship." Cain could recall how easy it was, like swatting a fly.

The commander had thought about how to replace the Blue Earth ever since it was shot down. Fortunately, there were a few alternatives for getting Slade into orbit. From there it would be simple for him to go further out into space. "Let me worry about that." He turned his attention to Shara "How are you feeling?"

"Why does everybody keep asking me that, I feel fine until it hits me. I'm just tired. Thank you commander. For keeping my brother here." Shara was thankful to be around any part of her family. Except when they were evil, then they were mostly just trying to kill her.

Jamison looked fondly at the girl and his communications officer "We consider Slade family, by extension, anyone that helps him is important to us. You and Saber here are our highest priority."

"Commander, what about Ringo?" With everything that had happened, Tina had overlooked the Blue Earth crashing and Ringo's unknown status.

Jamison softened his expression, he was expecting Saber to be much more stubborn about saving Shara, he could relax a little bit "Slade, Star, and Maggie are out searching for the Blue Earth. Tina, you can go and track their progress if you like, I need to speak with these two in any case."

"Will do, commander." Tina brightened. She was more comfortable monitoring missions or developing new technologies for her friends. Sitting around dealing with Saber and Shara was nice and all but it was not what she had been doing since the war started. Tina left the room.

Jamison regarded the two siblings "Cain, do you know how long Shara has to live?"

"She should already be dead, I don't know how much time she has left." Cain looked at his sister, her weakened state was all too apparent. She was pale, and even sitting up with the bed supporting her was taking much of her meager strength.

Shara spoke up, she could feel the unfinished tekno-process coursing through her, seemed like it was waiting for a moment of exertion, then it would strike "Commander Jamison, if I don't transform, I still have some time. Not months, but a week at least. Just don't take too long." Shara finished with a wry grin, what she didn't say was that a transformation would kill her when she powered down.

"It won't take that long to gather the crystals, it's good that we're not under a short deadline. This means we can plan, maybe I can even get the military to help us out." Jamison could see even more possibilities with that as yet untapped resource. He could get ships and crews. Then they could mount a real assault on the Space Ring, Instead of sending Slade charging in alone.

Saber and Shara shared a look, but it was Shara who spoke up "Commander, how is Ness doing?" She, and Saber, did want to know how their brother was faring on his mission, but they also wanted to have a private conversation about their previous violent encounters, and nobody needed to hear that.

"I'll go find out, anything you two need, don't hesitate to ask. Just one thing, don't try and leave the base in secret again Shara, Slade would never forgive me if I let that happen happen twice." Jamison could only imagine the turmoil that would have resulted if Shara had died when she had snuck out the last time. He swiftly turned and left the room, he was hopeful that Ringo had survived the crash, and that they could recover him regardless. But of course, he couldn't be certain.

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Commander Jamison and Slade were right when they decided to use the newly repaired Hover-tank. There were still a number of Spider-crabs roaming around outside the command center. There was no concerted attack. But whenever they stumbled on an exposed part of the base they broke in with no trouble, these intrusions were handled by the Space Knight's own security forces. The humans had a tough time, they were still using conventional weaponry. They concentrated all their firepower on each attack in turn, acting like an old-time fire brigade.

The Space Knight's were about to get a reprieve. The Hover-tank had launched and was rapidly moving into position. The sleek black and grey vehicle was a revolutionary new concept for human weapons. A melding of alien and human technologies. They wanted to head straight for Ringo, but Slade wanted to clear the area first.

Star was piloting and Maggie was manning the gun. Slade was providing targeting information from the commander's position in the turret. They just reached the flank of three Spider-crabs trying to dig their way into the command center "Star stop here, Maggie, targets, 12 o'clock, fire at will."

"Right, engaging" Maggie fired the first shot, which obliterated a Spider-crab. The remaining two turned and charged the tank.

Without any prompting, Star put the tank into full reverse, and Slade chimed in "Maggie, fire as quickly as you can, don't wait for a full recharge on the gun."

"Gotcha, here it comes!" Maggie fired again, her first shot clipped the second enemy insect, blowing half of it away, that was enough to kill it though.

Star made a snap decision, she stopped the tank "Wait until it's right on top of us, then hit it with everything we've got!"

The third Spider-crab charged, normally human vehicles posed a minimal threat, this was not a normal day. As it raised its massive claw to squash the insignificant humans, Maggie's aim was true. The resulting energy blast caught the Venomoid at point blank range. There was nothing left after the blast.

After the skirmish was over, Star changed how they would conduct the mission from here on "Maggie, I'm going to keep us at full speed. You hit everything you can. Slade, call out any Spider-crabs you see, we're not going to stop and destroy them all, we'll get to Ringo first. If you send reports back to commander Jamison, he'll have a better handle on the situation."

Maggie and Slade both responded in the affirmative. Maggie was happy with the change, if they were moving they would be safer, and she was given free rein with the weapon, it was just her style. Slade was relieved that Star had changed their plan. The tank was ill-suited for close range combat against multiple enemies.

Star took them on a path that wove through the Spider-crabs, not giving them a chance to strike or chase. Maggie fired many shots, given that the tank was moving at high speed, only half of the shots hit their targets.

They reached the crash site of the Blue Earth. Star and Slade exited the tank, Star wanted to make sure that the enemy didn't sneak up on them, she told Maggie just before they left "Stay here and keep watch. Hopefully we'll have Ringo out of there in no time."

They found Ringo still strapped into the pilot's seat in the ship. He was unconscious, and he was badly injured from the crash. It was a miracle that he was still alive, Slade moved to unstrap him "Come on buddy, lets get you fixed up."

They would salvage the Blue Earth later, for now they loaded up Ringo and returned to the command center. They had given Jamison good intelligence on the remaining Spider-crabs. He and Mac were able to get some of the base defenses back online. They used these along with the troops they had left to dispatch the last of the enemy. Ringo was rushed to the medical wing once the Hover-tank was back in the hanger bay.

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The medical wing had it's hands full. Keeping Shara stable was a day and night operation. Ringo on the other hand was in critical condition. He had multiple injuries from the crash. There were the typical broken bones and dislocated joints from coming to a sudden stop. Those were nothing compared to the internal damage.

After Slade left Ringo, he went to see how his sister and brother were doing. When he entered her room he noticed how much better she looked since the last time he saw her. Of course, she was writhing in pain and screaming when he last left. Any improvement was welcome. Slade took a moment to savor the impromptu reunion. Most of what was left of his family were alive and not enslaved to the monstrous invaders.

"Ness, where were you?" Shara was happy to see her brother. Talking with Cain was nice, but their history was rocky. Ness hadn't tried to kill her in the recent past. But it was curious that he had left her side. Especially given the care he had shown earlier.

Ness noted that Cain was doting on their sister as expected now that he was free of the Venomoids' control "I was out picking up Ringo from the crash site. How are you holding up?"

"I'm okay for now, Commander Jamison and Cain came up with a plan to save me." Shara then proceeded to tell Ness of her talk with Jamison. She told Ness how they all agreed to an operation that would take place very soon.

Ness felt a spark of hope, he had resigned himself to Shara's inevitable death, even with Saber's earlier comments about having a way to save her "I can't believe it, you really think it'll work?"

Cain answered for his sister "Of course it will, that commander of yours is getting some help with the plan, I mean, I did destroy your ship and all. Sorry about that." Cain chuckled slightly at his lame attempt at a joke, Ringo had almost died. And they lost one of their main ways of striking against the enemy.

"That's good to hear. So will we be fighting side by side for once?" Ness would be happy to have an ally as powerful as himself for a change.

Cain was about to temper that happiness "Afraid not, I'm supposed to sit on the bench for this. Seems I'm supposed to be a surprise later on. That commander of yours is a crafty one."

"He's got good reasons I suppose. I wonder how long we have until we can leave to go get those crystals?" Slade was confident in his friends. They would come up with something.

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"24 hours, are you sure.?" Jamison was speaking with General Hartmann again, he had asked for some ships and pilots to launch an attack on the Space Ring.

Hartmann was surprised at the modest request, Jamison had a grandiose idea the last time he called. This time, he was requesting only three ships. Two bombers to make diversionary attacks against suspected concentrations of Spider-crabs on the Space Ring. Curiously, Jamison had asked for an empty transport, it was to head for the main enemy outpost "With preparation and briefings, yes, I believe that is more than enough time. Is there anything else?"

"How many nuclear weapons do you have left?" Jamison waited anxiously for an answer. Both his short- and long-term plans would be impacted by the General's response.

Hartmann darkened considerably "That's a closely guarded secret, I am not authorized to transmit that information, we don't know if the enemy is listening. Why do you ask?"

"Well sir, I want you to fire a volley of ballistic missiles at the Moon in support of the operation tomorrow. Also, while we prepare for our big push, you can use them to stave off enemy landings."

Now that got Hartmann interested "Why the Moon?"

"My source of information has told me that the enemy's main base is on the dark side of it. She didn't say exactly where, but multiple nuclear explosions will surely keep their heads down." Jamison knew that if the Venomoids were busy dealing with those missiles, they would be distracted from the real mission of getting the crystals to save Shara.

Hartmann was warming to the idea now. The enemy had left the stockpiles of atomic warheads and delivery systems largely untouched. Except for air and space launched weapons. Human air- and spacecraft had suffered heavy losses to date in the war. But the land-based silos and nuclear-armed submarines were still there. They could be used as a shield for the Earth "I see, good work commander, I'll give you what support I can. I might not be as much as you want, but you'll have some cover for your mission."

Thank you, General, if you'll excuse me sir, I need to brief my people about the details we talked about." Jamison saluted, noted Hartmann's return gesture and nod, then he closed the communication.

Jamison then turned to Tina "Call everyone in, we some work to do by tomorrow."

"Yes, sir!" Tina switched on the intercom "Attention everyone, report to the G3 area for an urgent briefing by the commander." Tina had a thought _'This will make Slade so happy, we're going to hit the enemy harder than ever and he'll get to save his sister in the process.' _

The war would hinge on the next day's events, things were looking up, but no plan survives contact with the enemy. Unknown to the humans, Darkon had noticed that one of his vaunted warriors was missing. For the moment he thought Saber was dead, because of this he spread his remaining Tekno-warriors around to make sure crucial places were kept secure. Surprises were in store for both sides.


End file.
